Yesterday I found myself round the back of Waterloo Station, as you do, my visit coinciding with a few beams of sunlight that were just starting to light up the capital. This is one of my favourite areas of London- Roupell Street in fact, where the street is lined with artisan's cottages from the mid-nineteenth century. On one corner is a delightful pub, further down nearer the station is this, a branch of Konditor & Cook. I could've spent an hour just looking through the window hungrily, with perhaps a frayed balaclava on my head and my shoelaces undone. But I didn't have time. If I had foregone trying to get on the M11 before the rush hour I would have gone in and bought something special. Particularly as today is Youngest Boy's birthday. Shame on me, happy birthday to him.
Isn't it interesting that ordinary daily cakes are tasty, but they drier, simpler, less decorated, less gooey.
Birthday cakes seemed to have developed a history of icing, cream in the middle, decoration in the form of candles and writing, and a squillion calories.
I am a designer, writer and photographer who spends all his time looking at England, particularly buildings and the countryside. But I have a leaning towards the slightly odd and neglected, the unsung elements that make England such an interesting place to live in. I am the author and photographer of over 25 books, in particular Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2006), More from Unmitigated England (Adelphi 2007), Cross Country (Wiley 2011), The Cigarette Papers (Frances Lincoln 2012), Preposterous Erections (Frances Lincoln 2012) and English Allsorts (Adelphi 2015)
"Open this book with reverence. It is a hymn to England". Clive Aslet
Preposterous Erections
"Enchanting...delightful". The Bookseller "Cheekily named" We Love This Book
The Cigarette Papers
"Unexpectedly pleasing and engrossing...beautifully illustrated". The Bookseller
Cross Country
"Until the happy advent of Peter Ashley's Cross Country it has, ironically, been foreigners who have been best at celebrating Englishness". Christina Hardyment / The Independent
More from Unmitigated England
"Give this book to someone you know- if not everyone you know." Simon Heffer, Country Life. "When it comes to spotting the small but telling details of Englishness, Peter Ashley has no equal." Michael Prodger, Sunday Telegraph
4 comments:
Truly scrumptious!
But they need a cake stand or two...
Isn't it interesting that ordinary daily cakes are tasty, but they drier, simpler, less decorated, less gooey.
Birthday cakes seemed to have developed a history of icing, cream in the middle, decoration in the form of candles and writing, and a squillion calories.
I know that shop, the cakes are excellent.
I know the pub. Even better.
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